Monday, August 2, 2010

"Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." - Romans 13:1

Paul spends the entirety of chapter 11 explaining that the Israelites aren't bad people. In fact, Paul says that it was because Israel was so bad that God had to give salvation to everyone. So the gentiles only received salvation as a result of God trying to give the Israelites salvation? A better question is why he didn't God foresee all this trouble and give salvation to everyone sooner? It seems that a lot of people are burning in eternal hellfire just because they didn't have the privilege of being born after Jesus.

In chapter 12, Paul says since we have received God's mercy that we should offer ourselves as living sacrifices. After we do this, and "transform" our minds, we will be able to test and see God's pleasing and perfect will. I see how this works, you simply have to accept that God's will is pleasing and perfect (by accepting Jesus), then you will be able to see that God's will is pleasing and perfect. By those criteria, I can prove anything to you.

We then have another section that some Christians conveniently forget to read. Paul says that we should bless those who persecute us, and that we should live in harmony with one another. Of course, living in harmony requires acceptance of other's beliefs/practices, which seems to be a problem with some Christians (I'm looking at you, Pat Robertson, Westboro Baptist Church, etc.).

Paul then goes on to say that we should not repay evil for evil, and we should be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. Everybody? I don't think anything can be right in the eyes of everybody. He also says that we should not take revenge on anyone, but instead allow for God's wrath. I guess George Bush didn't quite get to this part of the bible.

Finally, chapter 13 is all about obeying government officials. This is because, Paul says, no authority comes to power without God. I'm curious what God saw in Hitler that he made him come to power. Paul even says that anyone who rebels against government authority is actually rebelling against God. Christians seem to be great at following (and quoting) this passage, until a Democrat is the president.

Paul ends chapter 13 by saying that all of the commandments are summed up by "love your neighbor as yourself". I'm curious where stone the gays/sabbath breakers/adulterers, falls in with "love your neighbor as yourself".

*News*

Does religion give you some sort of exemption from violent crime? A New Jersey judge seems to think so:

She said on Nov. 16, 2008 her husband ordered her to strip naked and said, "Now we're going to start punishing you. Then he started to pinch my private areas." She said that while she cried, her husband proceeded to engage in non-consensual sex that was very painful to her.

The wife told family court her husband said, "This is according to our religion. You are my wife, I can do anything to you."

An imam who testified at the family court hearing agreed, saying a wife must comply with her husband's sexual needs, but noted that he is forbidden from approaching her "like any animal," according to court records.

The judge heard the evidence of this rape, and ruled this:

But in his ruling, Charles, a former assemblyman and state senator, said he did not feel the husband "had a criminal desire to or intent to sexually assault . He was operating under his belief that it is, as the husband, his desire to have sex when and whether he wanted to, was consistent with his practices and was something that was not prohibited."

He had the intent to have sex with someone against their will. I don't see the judge's hesitation. How much more intent to sexually assault can you have? It also says in the bible that rapists are obligated to marry their rape victims. Would this ass hole back that up too because it's "consistent with practices". We can go even further with this, it says in the bible (and surely in the Quran as well) that's it's ok to stone people for a number of reasons. That's also "consistent with his practices" does he get off for that too?

This is the very reason that those crazy Christians are afraid Sharia law is going to take over America if we start letting people build Mosques. It's unfathomable to me that any real judge would actually support the idea of Sharia law exempting anyone.

Thankfully, the appellate judge isn't an idiot:

The appellate court reversal on July 23 states that Charles recognized "the case thus presents a conflict between the criminal law and religious precepts.

"In resolving this conflict, the judge determined to except (sic) defendant from the operation of the state's statutes as the result of his religious belief. In doing so, the judge was mistaken."

"Relativistic morality" wins again. Yes, Christians, that "objective morality" you tout, when applied in Islam allows people to rape their wives. When you understand why you reject the "objective morality" of Islam you will understand why I reject your objective morality.

Rom 11:3. Paul mentions that oft-repeated claim that the Jews killed their own prophets, yet omits the much stronger accusation that they killed Jesus. This will be relevant when we come to 1 Thessalonians.

Rom 11:8. Now we have the "spirit of stupor."

Rom 11:13. Paul is the self-designated "apostle to the Gentiles." So why is he portrayed through-out Acts as always trying to preach to the Jews first?

Rom 9-11, especially 11:26: "all Israel will be saved." Does this sound like the same Paul in Acts who turned his backs on the Jews?

Rom 12:9-21. How could Paul say things such as "Do not repay anyone evil for evil," "Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position," "Bless those who persecute you" and not associate these to the quotes/stories of Jesus that one finds in the Gospels? Doesn't Paul know about them?!

Rom 12:13: "Share with God's people who are in need." Not with everyone, just Xians who need. Non-Xian needy can go f*ck themselves.

Rom 13:3: "For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong." So Jesus wasn't innocent?! How could anyone write this sentence if he was aware that Jesus had been condemned to death, as in the Gospels, in a miscarriage of Roman justice?

Rom 13:7: "Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes." I guess Paul didn't hear about Jesus saying, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's," because otherwise he surely would have cited it.

Rom 13:9: 'The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." '

"whatever other commandment there may be"? Paul doesn't remember them?! He's like Jesus in Mark, when the young man asks him what he must do to have eternal life. And how could Paul not draw the connection with Jesus saying that the most important commandment is "Love your neighbor as yourself"?

Rom 13:10: "love is the fulfillment of the law"? I thought Christ was.

Rom 13:11-12a. Paul apparently, like Jesus, also believed that the apocalypse would occur in the 1st c. CE. He was only off by 2,000 years and counting.